Adult Enrichment

Ethical Culture embraces a wide variety of perspectives and life-styles. Most who are drawn to Ethical Culture and the Baltimore Ethical Society, however, share a great respect for reason, compassion, pragmatism, and humility. These qualities are fundamental to life-long learning and personal growth.

To encourage such education and growth, the Baltimore Ethical Society offers a wide variety of classes and workshops for adults. Most classes are taught by Leader Hugh Taft-Morales and are offered on Sundays at 12:30 p.m., though there are also occasional evening events and ethical action opportunities. Check the Platforms & Events page for upcoming opportunities.

There are recuring classes about the philosophy and history of Ethical Culture, including some focusing on the founder, Felix Adler, as well as the values that animate Ethical Humanism, such as the inherent worth of all people, social justice, and the importance of ethical relationships.

In addition, many of the classes are about general philosophy or contemporary issues. Some offered recently include:

Justice in Philosophy and Public Policy: an exploration of the links between philosophy and public policy regarding issues of justice, using material from Harvard professor Michael Sandel’s book Justice: What’s the Right Thing to Do?

Skepticism and Truth: a philosophical exploration of the meaning of truth and doubt, including an historical overview of skepticism and three philosophical perspectives on truth: correspondence, coherence, and pragmatism.

A U. S. Constitution Primer: a dynamic overview of this amazing document and how it is being interpreted in some debates about contemporary political issues, such as health care, gun control, and immigration reform.

Philosophies of the Self: a presentation and discussion of some classic philosophical models of personal identity from the Greeks through David Hume and William James.

Gender, Ethics and Ethical Culture: an exploration of two clashing approaches to moral development represented by Lawrence Kohlberg and Carol Gilligan, along with a suggested Ethical Culture compromise that does justice to both autonomy and relationship in human life.

If you have an area of expertise and would like to share it with BES members in a class or workshop, please contact Leader Hugh Taft-Morales or the chair of the Program Committee.

Baltimore Ethical Society

The Baltimore Ethical Society is a humanistic religious fellowship. We focus on human lives and relationships and explore what it means to live ethically as individuals, family members, and participants in the larger community. We have no creeds and no doctrines, but we are united by our belief in the worth and dignity of each individual and our commitment to working together to create a more just, humane, and peaceful world.